Mortals call it Hell, Lucifer calls it The City. It’s a land of good and evil, and Lu is the mayor. He didn’t ask for the job, but someone with some sense needs to keep order, and after going against Archangel Law, Lu knows he must pay the price.

Though his crime may have cost him his Heavenly home, when trouble shows up in The City, his brothers send Lu reinforcement in the guise of a good-looking bodyguard named Dominic Ramos.

Used to having any man he wants, Lu isn’t happy when his charms don’t immediately have the desired effect on Dominic. He sets out to seduce the gorgeous man using every weapon in his arsenal. When a night of unbridled passion culminates in a public coupling, Lu’s feelings on random sex are forever changed.

Excerpt

Note for Readers: You must be over eighteen to read this excerpt.

Lucifer stretched out on his favorite lounge chair beside his large, rooftop swimming pool. The city below was lazy during the day, and Lu planned to take full advantage of the quiet. Images of his brother played through his head as he soaked up the sun.

Despite his ongoing feud with his brother, Lu still couldn’t forget Michael. Even after thousands of years, he couldn’t stop loving the Archangel. Michael hadn’t always been the favored one. Lu had once held that position. Humans could believe what they wanted, but his ousting had more to do with him breaking a law that should not be on the books in the first place.

He’d spent several hundred years working to build a place to call home, and finally finished it. Most people referred to it as Hell, but Lu preferred to call it The City.

“You’re gonna get sunburned,” a deep voice declared.

Lu opened one eye and grinned at his best friend, Basileios Kostopoulos. “Hey, Baz.”

The black-haired Spartan reached down and stroked Lu’s erection for several moments before tossing a towel over Lu’s groin. “I’ve got too much going on to get distracted.”

Lu shrugged. It was normal for him and Baz to end up fucking at some point whenever they were together. Baz may claim to be too busy, but Lu knew all it would take was an invitation and his best friend would be all over him.

For some unknown reason, his father had made him irresistible to most humans. He didn’t blame Baz or anyone else in The City for wanting him. Lu knew humans were much weaker at abstaining from sex. It went with their nature.

Baz let out a loud grunt and threw himself down in another of the poolside chairs. “Stop it. I’ve got something important to talk to you about.”

Baz was always on alert. A warrior in life, he carried over the same mentality in death. They both knew Baz shouldn’t even be in The City, but Baz had actually asked to be assigned there, unlike most of the residents. According to his friend, Heaven was a tad too sedate for his taste. He needed the action The City provided.

“What’s up?”

“I’m worried about you. I’ve been hearing a lot of shit lately about a guy wanting you dead,” Baz explained.

Lu closed his eyes and resumed his attention to the sun. “I wish him luck. Do you have any idea how many fools have tried to kill me?”

“This is different. One of my friends just informed me the guy claims to have the Dagger of the Beast.”

Lu blinked several times before staring numbly at the sky. He was glad his dark sunglasses hid the emotion he knew was clearly on display within their black depths. His heart began to hammer in his chest at the mere mention of the long lost dagger. Only one person could wield the dagger successfully, its creator, Ambrosios. “Do you think it’s true?”

“I don’t know, but do you really want to take the chance?” Baz asked.

The Dagger of the Beast was the only way to kill an Archangel. Although he’d fallen out of favor, Lu was still, technically, one of them. “Has anyone contacted Michael or Gabriel?”

Baz shook his head. “Your brothers don’t exactly have a fan club here.”

Lu chuckled. “It would appear neither do I.”

“That’s not true. Sure there are some who’d love nothing more than to see you bleeding in the streets, your guts spilled out beside you, but most of us think you’re doing a good job of keeping a modicum of order in a place like this.”

Lu’s black eyebrows drew together as he turned his head to regard his friend. “Bleeding in the street with my guts spilled out beside me? Nice.”

Baz shrugged but didn’t bother to amend his statement.

Lu swung his legs to the pool deck and stood, unconcerned by his nudity. He walked toward his penthouse and spoke over his shoulder. “See what else you can find out.”

Stepping inside the cooler temperature of his home, he tossed his sunglasses to the table. He knew he needed to get word to his brothers. If Ambrosios really was in possession of the dagger, it could become dangerous for not only him, but his brothers as well.

How long had it been since he’d tried talking to Michael? Luc winced as he remembered the anger on his brother’s face when they’d faced off in the court of Angels, just before Michael had banished him from heaven. Maybe Gabriel would be a better choice.

With a wave of his hand, Lu was dressed in his finest black suit. He admired his reflection in the mirror. Those who thought vanity was a sin just weren’t as pretty as he was. This was Hell, and if he wanted to admire what God had so thoughtfully and carefully created, that was his right.

As he adjusted his red silk tie, Lu began to wonder whether or not Baz’s friends were telling the truth. After all, The City was not known for housing honest citizens. He glanced out to the pool area and spotted Baz on his phone.

“Hey, Baz! When you’re done, get in here.”

Baz didn’t answer but nodded his head in reply. He gazed at Lu, standing in the doorway, and ran a hand over the front of his suit pants.

Lu shook his head, letting his fuck buddy know it wasn’t the time for fun. Baz finally ended his call and strode toward Lu.

“What’s up?”

“I want you to go to The Inferno with me after dinner.” Even though he didn’t have time to play at the moment, Lu’s eyes wandered to the familiar erection pressing against the front of Baz’s charcoal grey pants.

“If you’ll watch my back, I’ll let you have my ass at the end of the night,” Lu informed his best friend.

“Unless you get a better offer,” Baz snorted.

Lu shrugged. He refused to make apologies for his sexual appetites and Baz knew it. “Will you come with me or not?”

“Sure. Let me call a few of my friends though. I’d feel better if we had a few allies in the place if the guy shows up.”

“Shall we go to the Glass House for dinner?” Lu asked.

“If you can get us a table,” Baz answered, opening his phone once again.

Lu rolled his eyes. The City was his. He could go anywhere, do anything he pleased. Even though he usually showed restraint, every now and then, the citizens needed to be reminded he wasn’t truly one of them.

While Baz finished his phone calls, Lu fixed himself a drink. Although he preferred something a little more exotic, he decided on the bottle of aged Scotch. He didn’t like to indulge in his drink of choice unless he was alone.

Glass in hand, he began to pace back and forth in front of the wall of windows. He stared out beyond The City to the Fires of Hell, as they were known. Lu grinned and shook his head. He knew the fires weren’t some demonic sign of purgatory. They were put in place to remind the citizens of their sins and to keep them content in their forced surroundings.

Nothing more than a parlor trick, but it seemed to work. No one ever tried to venture outside The City. Why fire had gotten a bad reputation, Lu would never understand. Was there anything more beautiful than a burning flame dancing in the wind?

“You ready?” Baz asked from behind him.

Lu finished his drink and set the glass on the bar. “I’m not taking your friends to dinner, you know, just you.”

“Yeah. Yeah. You’ll forever be a cheapskate, no matter how much money you possess.”

Lu didn’t dignify the snide comment with a response. He slipped his wallet into the inside breast pocket of his suit coat and pushed the private elevator button. The doors immediately opened and Lu stepped inside, Baz on his heels.

Once inside, Lu pressed the bright yellow button, signaling his chauffer to have the car ready when he reached the lobby.

“It’s two blocks away. I think we could’ve walked,” Baz said.

Lu glanced up at Baz. “I pay Will a king’s ransom and barely go out of my house. I think he can drive me the two blocks.”

As they traveled down ninety-nine floors, Lu began to wonder what was going on with Baz. His friend rarely sniped at him about his wealth and he’d done it almost nonstop since the phone call he’d received by the pool.

Lu turned and pressed his lithe body against the muscled Spartan, letting his hands roam freely. “What’s wrong, Baz? Are you mad at me for something?”

The muscles in Baz’s jaws began to contract as he obviously fought to ignore Lu’s wandering hands. “I don’t like the idea of you playing fast and loose with your life.”

Although they really were just friends and fuck buddies, Baz would be lost in The City without him. Baz’s statement was obviously given out of true concern. Lu put a hand to the back of Baz’s head and pulled him down for a kiss. He swept his tongue around the interior of Baz’s mouth before moaning and breaking the kiss.

“I’ll be fine.”

Baz glanced down at the hard ridge threatening to break through his zipper. “Why do you always have to do that to me right before the doors open?”

Lu grinned as the elevator settled on the ground floor and the doors opened with a swoosh. “Because I like knowing I made you hard.”

Baz made a sound deep in his throat and stepped off the elevator. Lu followed behind his friend, taking the time to stare at the man’s gorgeous ass. Lu’s chauffer, William Bales, stood outside the front of the building beside the long black limousine.

“Good evening, Sir,” Will greeted as he opened the passenger door.

“To the Glass House,” Lu instructed. He slid inside the luxurious interior of the stretch and smoothed his jacket. Sitting across from him, Lu noticed Baz staring. “What?”

“I found out a little more about the guy who wants you dead. He’s an Atlantean.”

Lu shook his head. “Impossible. There are no Atlanteans in The City. Atlantis was God’s…” Lu bit his lip. There were certain things even he wouldn’t speak of.

Baz leaned forward, bracing his arms on his knees. “Raquel wouldn’t lie to me, Lu. There is an Atlantean here.”

Lu didn’t know Baz’s friend Raquel well, but he did know enough about the woman to trust her. Well, as much as he trusted anyone. “Then the big question is why now?”